New York’s High Line Park Receives $20 Million Gift to Expand
Since its debut the summer of 2009, High Line Park has become a huge success. Attracting more than 3 million annual visitors to the Chelsea section of Manhattan, the aboveground park built on a former elevated railroad line, has led to more than $2 billion in planned or new development in the neighborhood. All it takes is one stroll on the mile-long walkway to understand the magical allure of being above the streets of Manhattan. The pathway heads north from Gansevoort to 30th Streets. With the announcement last week that Barry Diller, chairman of IAC and Expedia, and his wife, designer, Diane von Furstenberg, have donated an additional $20 million to the park, Friends of the High Line hope to expand the park another half mile to 12th Avenue and 34th Street, close to the Hudson River. Diller and his wife are no strangers to the High Line, having donated close to $15 million prior to their latest gift, the single largest donation ever made to a New York City park. It’s exciting news that the park will finally curve its way to the railway’s rightful endpoint.